Process of marking coke



Aug. 29, 1933. G. v. McGURL 1,924,194

PROCESS OF MARKING COKE Filed March 7, 1930 V EN TOR.

Patented Aug. 29, 1933 PATENT OFFICE 1,924,194 PROCESS OF MARKING COKE Gilbert V. McGurl, Chicago, Ill., assignor to Thev Koppers Company of Delaware, a corporation of Delaware Application March 7, 1930. Serial No. 434,176

1 Claim.

My invention relates to method ofmarking coke for identification and particularly to the marking of coke in such manner as to render it distinctive in appearance.

6 An object of my invention is to provide a suitable material for marking coke that will penetrate the porous outer surface of the coke in such manner as to be firmly secured thereto.

A further object of my invention is to provide a material for marking coke that is highly resistant to weather conditions and which is of fast color.

A further object of my invention is to provide a material for marking coke that may be readily and economically applied to relatively great bulk of coke.

A still further object of my invention is to provide a simple and convenient method of marking coke for identification purposes.

It has been proposed heretofore to mark coke in such manner as to identify it by reason of its color or other appearance. Many of such methods have, however, not been satisfactory by reason of the fact that either the material for marking was expensive, the time and labor involved were prohibitive or that the material, when applied, remained on the coke only temporarily and did not withstand weather conditions. satisfactorily conspicuous marks have been excessive in cost. In accordance with the present inventioml provide paper pulp of any desired color and in such fluid state that it may be readily applied by means of fluid pressure to a moving stream of coke. The marking material may be supplied in such quantities, if desired, to mark substantially all the pieces of the coke whereby the latter is rendered distinctive in appearance and its identity is clearly established by the manner in which it is marked.

In preparing a batch of dyed pulp for marking coke, cellulosic pulp, such as is employed in connection with the manufacture of paper in paper mills, is supplied to a suitable beater engine after the beater is partially filled with water. The weighed amount of pulp is sufficient to make 2.5 to 3% of stock. The pulp is then disintegrated in the water and the correct amount of dye in solution is added. It may be noted that the dye should be dissolved in hot distilled water. If the water used in the pulp is of such hardness as to have a deleterious effect on the dye, soft water should be used for the entire mixture.

Most fast dyes have slight affinity for pulp and it is advisable to use rosin size and an alum, or other suitable chemical, for example, aluminium sulphate (Al:(S04):.l8H:0). to fix the dye on the Pulp 1000 lbs. sulphite screenings Dye 10 lbs. solantine red. 8 BLNP 20 lbs. rosin size Slzmg{ 25 lbs. alum This amount of mixture will treat approximately 2250 tons of coke based on the use of 200 7 gramspulp per ton. The amount .of dye mixture, as well as the quantity of mixture used per ton of coke, may be varied at will, depending upon the depth of color and the degree to which it is desired that the coke be covered. 7

Instead of sulphite screenings, it is possible to use any fibrous or semi-fibrous pulp, such, for example, as cornstalk pulp, groundwood pulp, groundwood screenings, old newspapers, bleached sulphite, unbleached sulphite or soda pulp. Cero tain of these alternative materials may be used satisfactorily but in some cases slightly more dye is required for the same depth of color and the resulting material does not retain its depth of color for the same period. Bleached sulphite, 5 unbleached sulphite and soda pulp may be substituted very satisfactorily for sulphite screenings, but their cost is somewhat higher.

The preferred dye employed, which is known commercially as Solantine red 8 BLNP, may, if desired, be replaced by any suitable dye or pigment to obtain various shades and colors. The following commercial dyes and pigments have been employed: Erie Fast scarlet 8BAP, Croceine scarlet F. P. Conc., Croceine scarlet MOOP, Fast red S. P. Conc., Solantine red 8BLNP, Erie violet BRP, Solantine violet RP, Erie Fast brown GRP, Erie yellow SRP Conc., Erie yellow SGP, Metanil yellow P Conc., Brilliant Croceine FL Extra Conc., Pontamine Fast'red 8BL, Peerless (red pigment), and Naples (red pigment).

The dye employed in the preferred mixture, however, has been found to be quite satisfactory by reason of its fast and brilliant red color.

Upon the completion of the process of beating the pulp, the latter is transferred into a tank for storage. Agitation of the mixture is necessary to prevent the pulp from settling. Wooden tanks are preferable for this purpose because the pulp is slightly acid after the addition of alum.

The prepared pulp may then be pumped or fed by gravity from the agitator tank to the sprays or other devices for applying the mixture to the coke. Any satisfactory type of spray may be used that will secure proper supply and distribution of the dyed pulp mixture. For example, the apparatus shown in the accompanying drawing may be employed. I

The single figure of the drawing, which is a View in elevation with parts in section, indicates somewhat diagrammatically a storage bin 1, from which coke is supplied through a gate 2 to a truck 3 or other suitable container to be loaded. A tank 5 supplies the dyed pulp mixture through a pipe 6 to a spray nozzle 7. The pulp, which is indicated at 8, is forced out of the nozzle '7 by means of compressed air from a nozzle 9 that is supplied by a pipe 10 having a regulating valve 11.

By suitably regulating the pressure of the air and thereby the quantity of pulp that isv applied to the coke, the latter may be marked to any desired degree and the marked coke, which is indicated at 12, will have a distinct appearance which will readily identify it from coke marked by any other material.

The coke thus marked retains its means of identification since the pulp conforms to the porous surface of the coke and when the pulp dries in position it is firmly secured to the coke and will remain for long periods, regardless of weather conditions.

The pulp will also retain its brilliancy of color for considerable periods by reason of the precaution taken in providing sizing materialfor fixing the dye onthe pulp fibers. This characteristic is quite important as it is essential that the identifying marks be distinct until the coke has passed I into the hands of the ultimate consumer.

The coke may be marked at any desired stage in its handling after being quenched but preferably as it is being loaded for shipment or for delivery to the consumer. The coke should be free falling when the pulp is applied.

My improved method of marking coke may be conveniently employed to identify different sizes of domestic coke. For example, stove size may be marked with red pulp, No. 1 nut size may be marked with green pulp, and No. 2 nut size may be marked with yellow pulp. When coke is so marked, the user may be certain that he is securing coke of the proper size for his particular furnace.

Coke marked with the material and in the manner described above possesses a number of advantages. The marking material is of fast color and it will retain its appearance for relatively long periods of time. The material is firmly secured on the coke by reason of its conforming to the rough cellular structure of the latter.

The marking material is combustible and contains very little ash. The marking material is clean and does not darken or otherwise change the unmarked surface of the coke. It does not increase the dustiness of the coke, has noodor and will not corrode or cause corrosion of materials with which it comes in contact. Coke marked as described above has a pleasing appearance.

If care is taken to mark all of the coke, it is impossible to mix an inferior coke with it since the addition may be readily detected. Furthermore, the marking material cannot be removed for use on other coke.

The cost of marking coke in the manner and with the material described above is low compared with materials previously proposed. This 

